Field of Invention
This invention relates to wearable computing devices and methods for the arm.
Introduction and Limitations of the Prior Art
During the past decade handheld computing devices have become ubiquitous, but there is now growing interest in the development of wearable computing devices and methods for the wrist and/or arm which may supplement or even replace handheld computing devices to some extent. There are specific challenges and new opportunities which are more relevant to wearable computing devices for the wrist and/or arm than they were for handheld computing devices. The goals of this invention are to create innovative devices and methods which: (a) overcome some of the specific challenges associated with such wearable devices; and (b) take advantage of specific new opportunities provided by such wearable devices.
There is a growing body of innovative prior art for wearable computing devices and methods for the wrist and/or arm. Several hundred examples of the most relevant prior art are included in the Information Disclosure Statement which accompanies this disclosure. Since touch screens have become common forms of human-to-computer communication, much of the prior art for wearable devices for the wrist and/or arm also includes touch screens. One key challenge associated with wearable devices for the wrist is that the wrist provides relatively little space for a visual computer interface. Some prior art seeks to address this problem by extending one or more computer displays circumferentially around the wrist. However, this is limited because one can only see a few displays around the circumference from a given perspective. One can rotate their wrist to see more, but this can be awkward. Some prior art seeks to address this problem by extending one or more computer displays proximally from the wrist up the forearm toward the elbow. However, these displays can be obscured when a person wears a long-sleeve garment. The prior art does not seem to offer a satisfactory solution to this problem.